Acting

Offered To Ages 10 Through AdultLevels: Beginner, Intermediate, And Advanced

Back Stage Pass is a bi-annual theatrical workshop hosted by the Joan Harris Centre. The course, held in the summer and winter sessions, consists of a series of classes, lectures and exercises designed to increase a performer's skills in the dramatic arts. Just like all the eight-week courses at the studio, Back Stage Pass concludes with a performance in which all the students of workshop participate.

The course follows the same format as dance classes at the Centre. Students are required not only to learn how to perform, but also to be versed in the proper terminology of theater, its rich history and diverse styles of acting. Topics in the workshop include; character acting, method acting, stage direction, costuming, stage make up, improvisation and how to properly audition.

There are three levels of Back Stage Pass with each stage becoming more involved. Level one serves as a basic introduction theater exercises in improvisation and training on how to prepare for stage work. Level two develops their skills further with more demanding work and teaches the students observation and investigation skills and how they are used when auditioning for or performing a role in a play. Level three is an advanced course that not only includes the previous topics but also introduces the performer to the different school's of acting, including East Coast, West Coast and Lee Strausburg method.